State Lawsuits Target AI Companies Over Safety and Consumer Harm

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier sued OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman for deceptive trade practices, negligence and alleged threats to public health, citing addiction, cognitive decline, suicide and violence. The complaint, a state action against an AI firm, was followed by civil suits in Kentucky and Pennsylvania and a federal case in British Columbia alleging ignored safety warnings. Anthropic’s $1.5 billion copyright settlement adds pressure.

Newsweek

The actions come as public scrutiny of generative AI intensifies. State attorneys general cite alleged ChatGPT use in planning violent acts, including a mass shooting at Florida State University. Private wrongful-death suits in California, Connecticut and Florida claim AI tools aided suicides and homicide-linked delusions, underscoring a political push—led by Florida’s AG and Governor Ron DeSantis—for consumer-protection standards on AI.

Newsweek

Plaintiffs include Florida AG James Uthmeier, Kentucky and Pennsylvania officials, British Columbia families and plaintiffs in wrongful-death suits. Defendants range from OpenAI (ChatGPT) to Anthropic, Google’s Gemini and Character.AI. Four states have filed civil actions; federal courts have received wrongful-death complaints from three states. Anthropic’s settlement is the largest AI copyright recovery so far.

Newsweek

Florida’s filing alleges that ChatGPT can promote addiction, cognitive decline, self-harm and violence. OpenAI responded that the model only supplies publicly available information and does not encourage illegal conduct, while emphasizing that it builds safety into its products and continuously improves how the system handles sensitive topics. The company also denied the allegation that it ignored explicit internal safety warnings.

Newsweek

Industry observers caution that the suits may hinder innovation and overreach state authority into technical domains. Critics note a lack of concrete evidence linking AI output to violent outcomes, suggesting the claims rely on speculative causation. Plaintiffs stress documented AI-facilitated planning of violent acts; OpenAI counters that its tool only provides public data, creating a factual gap between the parties.

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• “great danger of addiction, cognitive decline, suicide, violence, and related harms.” — James Uthmeier, Florida AG

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• “ChatGPT can fuel addiction, cognitive decline, self-harm, and violence.” — Florida AG complaint

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• “OpenAI maintains that it builds safety into its products and continues improving how ChatGPT responds in sensitive situations.” — OpenAI spokesperson

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• “ChatGPT only provided publicly available information and did not encourage illegal behavior.” — OpenAI response

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The cases remain pending in state and federal courts, and rulings could shape national AI regulation. Lawmakers in several states plan legislation mirroring the complaints. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is monitoring the sector, indicating broader federal action may follow these suits.

Newsweek